Economic System

 

Pre-colonial Maori subsisted on hunting, fishing, and gathering, supplemented by horticulture. Having no form of money at this time, the various Maori clans would trade with one another through a barter system. Maori from coastal regions might offer ocean fish or seal meat in exchange for freshwater fish from Maori who live further inland, or they might trade semiprecious greenstone (jade), whale ivory, and obsidian for other goods.

 

Subsistence methods

 

The first Maori to arrive in New Zealand hunted a large flightless bird called the moa, which stood approximately ten feet tall. The moa ultimately went extinct in part due to this hunting, but archaeological evidence suggests it was already “on the way out” before the arrival of the Maori. After the extinction of the moa, the Maori hunted smaller flightless birds called kiwi, bush-parrots, wood pigeons, and other native birds for food and feathers. Dogs and rats were also trapped and eaten for food; dog skins were sometimes incorporated into clothing. Kai moana or seafood was a staple in the Maori diet, as well as kumara, a type of sweet potato, and taro, another starchy root vegetable. It is believed that the Maori brought kumara and taro with them when they emigrated from other Polynesian islands. Maori also cultivated fern root and the gourd, and gathered various wild-growing ferns, herbs, berries, sea vegetables, cabbage-tree roots and shoots, bulrush, and hearts of palm for medicine and for food. Ritual cannibalism was often a component of warfare, but was not a regular part of the Maori diet. (This is discussed in the chapter on politics.) Various trees on the islands were used for firewood and for building houses and ritual objects; native flax was used for making clothing and objects for play and ritual.

 

Division of labor

 

The Maori economic system was characterized by sexual division of labor, based as much on their concept of tapu (discussed in the section on belief system) as the physical strength of the sexes. Men hunted whales and seals, fished on the open ocean or inland streams, dove for rock lobster and paua (abalone), and trapped birds, rats, and eels. Men would haul logs for building canoes, a very sacred practice. Otherwise, hauling of wood was largely the task of females and slaves, who did not possess tapu. Men were the sole carvers, tattooists, and warriors.

Women gathered shellfish on the shores, as well as gathering native berries, weaving baskets and other crafts, and making raincoats and other clothing with flax plants and bird feathers. It was also their responsibility to plant and tend kumara and fern root crops with digging sticks called ko. Women sometimes trapped birds, but were usually allocated smaller bushes. Weaving and making clothing were also mainly female occupations. Cooking was performed only by women and slaves since this was considered an especially noa activity, offensive to a free man’s tapu. Other special tasks reserved for women included lifting the tapu off of completed projects such as the wharenui and welcoming visitors during the powhiri (explained in the section on social system). One Maori saying goes that a woman instigates tapu, and can also dissipate tapu.

 

 

Food preparation and storage

 

The main method of food preservation was drying. Fish and eels could be sun-dried on rocks in order to preserve them. Sharks were dried whole (except for the heads) while eels and scale fish were split open before drying. Birds and rats could be cooked in gourds and then preserved in kelp bags in their own fat. Some varieties of berries, like karaka, required extensive preparation, while others, like the tutu, necessitated removal of poisonous seeds before consumption. The abundant resources of New Zealand meant that surpluses were common, so the Maori often built storage pits or pataka, richly carved special storehouses, to store and hold preserved food.

Crushed fern root was roasted over charcoals, and Maori living near hot springs would sometimes use geothermal energy for cooking. Most other cooking was done in earth ovens called hangi. A circular pit approximately one meter in diameter would be filled with wood with smooth stones placed on top. After the wood was burnt and the stones heated thoroughly, food would be placed upon the stones between layers of leaves. Water was liberally sprinkled on top, and then the pit was covered with plaited flax mats and earth to seal in the steam.

 

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